


nine of a kind

by foolishbones



Category: Stray Kids (Band)
Genre: Fairy AU, M/M, Poly, enjoy, uhh this fic is born completely from a deadly cocktail of Jeongin Love and pure unbridled rage
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-31
Updated: 2018-08-10
Packaged: 2019-06-19 17:27:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 9,056
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15514854
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/foolishbones/pseuds/foolishbones
Summary: When Felix had started his day he couldn't truthfully say that finding a napping faerie in the woods was on his agenda





	1. soft hearts

"Uhhh, Chan, if I hypothetically found a tiny boy in the woods and decided I was gonna bring him back to the house, hypothetically, of course, what would you hypothetically do?"

"Hypothetically? I'd ask you, Felix, why is there a hypothetically tiny boy in the woods. Is he okay? Does he need medical attention?" Felix let out a frustrated hiss into his phone, hanging up on Chan. He'd been found out. But how was he supposed to leave a random kid in the woods? He (the kid, that is) had been strangely peaceful, napping away in an odd circle of mushrooms, bees buzzing around him. 

Too peaceful, Felix had thought, he hadn't even stirred until he was just about shouting. That worried Felix, and though some of that worry disappeared when the boy sat up blearily, he remained on his toes. As peculiar as the boy had been asleep, he was even stranger awake. When he was aware enough to take in surroundings he didn't seem surprised that a stranger had woken him up. He had appeared pleased actually, like the cat who got the cream.

He'd stood, giving Felix a long once-over before falling into a curtsy-type bow, sweeping off his beret in a swishing movement. Felix was strangely reminded of peter pan when the boy finished performing the move. It somehow came off as a very, very old thing to do, as if they'd met in a ballroom in some long-ago wartime, and not like Felix had found him in the woods and decided he was going to bring him back to the home he shared with his classmates.

Speaking of, he'd have to sneak the boy in very carefully, as the house was technically school lodging. If the administration found out, well, it looked like being a high school dropout was a very real possibility. Despite the risks, there was something curiously magnetic about him, and Felix felt a smile rise to his face as he watched him hop around, going from smelling a flower, to throwing a rock, to attempting to catch a butterfly in the span of a few seconds. He seemed to become bored by this, being unable to trap the insect and instead began to whistle. 

Felix suddenly realized the boy was yet to say a single word and was about to comment on it when suddenly the boy started to whistle a familiar tune. Felix couldn't have said where he'd heard the tune before, but the melody of it seemed to echo and ricochet in his bones. The soft, deep notes, the curling whispers of high notes, it was haunting. And yet, the boy continued to hop around, whistling as he went. When he noticed Felix's stare he paused, throwing Felix a big unabashed braced smile, and Felix felt some part of him absolutely melt. It was a joke to even consider leaving this boy behind. He could be a serial killer for all Felix cared, but at this point, there was a strange pull to him, demanding that he be kept safe a protected. If those duties fell to Felix, then so be it. 

When they reached the edge of the woods Felix was surprised. It had taken him a near forty minutes to get to where he had found the boy, and a quick glance at his watch confirmed that they'd only been walking back for a near eight. The boy continued to follow him, unconcerned still, but looking a fair deal more curious, staring wide-eyed at the surrounding industrial-looking buildings of the city. His relaxed state evaporated as a passing car let loose with their horn. The boy jumped so high, it almost looked unnatural.

Gone was his pleased and calm demeanor, Felix could see the tremble of his hand and quiver in his bottom lip. He extended his hand to the boy, who took it gratefully, curling himself into the taller boys side. Felix led the way to the campus house, realizing as he got there that he probably should have warned the boy before. Living with seven other teenage boys wasn't a particularly calm environment, and Felix wasn't sure how he'd react, considering his terror at normal city noises. 

Tilting his head down towards the boy he said, "Um, just as a warning I have seven housemates, and they're- uh, well-intentioned, I guess, but they're kind of loud and I wouldn't want you to be scared." The boy gave him a nervous smile, and burrowed deeper into Felix's side before nodding.With that, Felix took the boy's hand into his own and led him into the house. As soon as they entered, his eyes went wide with curiosity and awe. It was enough to make Felix wonder where this boy was from that he expressed such wonder at even the simplest of commodities, houses, cars, the city. He also had to wonder how he was going to react to his friends. They were sweet, and they never truly meant any harm, but often they'd come off a little bit strong. 

It turns out he needn't have worried, seeing as he had caught his best friends in the midst of the daily group nap time. They looked soft and content, limbs tangled and blankets spread as they lounged together on the couch in the dorms living room. The only thing he could think of that might startle the boy in this situation was the fact that no one seemed to be fully dressed, everyone decked out in some sort of topless look. Lucky for him, the boy didn't seem phased, unluckily for him however, it looked like Chan and Woojin, the only two people he figured would handle this quietly and calmly were right in the center of the cuddle pile. 

Turning to the boy, he began, "wait here." The boy just stared blankly back at him. Huh, maybe he didn't speak any English? Felix tried again, this time in Korean. Nothing. Despite the language barrier Felix somehow managed to mime out his directions to the boy. With that taken care of he headed towards the center of the cuddle pile holding his breath. With as much delicacy as he could manage, he was able to successfully remove Woojin and Chan, without waking anyone else no less. 

Chan had appeared worried from the very moment he opened his eyes, his worry cementing when he saw Felix. Woojin was still soft from sleep, his mouth curled into a small frown, his eyes puffy. Felix led the two of them over to where he had left the boy, a finger pressed to his own lips ensuring their silence. When Chan met eyes with him Felix knew he was barely restraining himself from full-on grilling the boy. Felix could practically see the thoughts swimming behind his eyes and knew that Chan wouldn't keep his mouth shut for very long. 

With a resigned sigh he led the trio to the kitchen, where the boy plopped happily onto his chair, Woojin slid into his, still tired and soft looking, and Chan dropped down warily. Felix knew that as much as Chan was attempting to keep his guard up, there were cracks beginning to form in his walls. Whatever weird magnetism had drawn him to the boy was obviously in full effect on Chan and Woojin, not that Felix minded, of course. 

After a moment of everyone getting a good look at everyone else, Chan turned and began to speak. "Hello, my name is Chan, can you tell us why you're here?" Felix shot him a glare, this wasn't supposed to be some sort of interrogation. The boy didn't respond, but he made a distressed (and unbelievably cute) face. 

"Chan hyung, I don't think he speaks Korean or English. You can try Japanese or Mandarin if you'd like." Chan took his suggestion, but still, no cigar. Even worse, the boy seemed to be getting upset with himself, his eyes getting glassy. Whoever this kid was, he was obviously far from home and terrified half out of his wits. What could Felix even do to help? He didn't even know the kid's name. His name! That was it, maybe his name had a hint to his cultural background and they could find out where he was from. 

Felix pointed at himself and said "Felix." He pointed to Chan, "Chan," and finally Woojin, "Woojin." The boy seemed to understand this and pointed to himself, and for a second, Felix was convinced that he was going to say his name too, but instead, he just rocked his arms like he was cradling a baby. Felix was going to scream. What did that even mean? Chan seemed to see the frustration on his face when he started to talk. 

"Felix, dude, calm down. I think his name translates to baby in whatever language he speaks." Baby, huh. Baby's name suited him more than Felix cared to admit. But how could they figure out what language baby spoke? As of right now, the language barrier was only becoming more obnoxious.

This too, Chan seemed to sense, because he gave Woojin a look before speaking again. "I have an idea, what if we plug a generic sentence into google translate like 'do you speak this language,' and just cycle through all the languages they have on record. That way, we can actually get through to Baby." By now, Baby seemed to have figured out the English translation of his name, because as Chan said it, his head whipped around from where he was staring at all the food in the pantry. Woojin offered him a smile, of which he enthusiastically returned. 

Felix took this moment to think through Chan's Plan, and truly, it wasn't that bad. He said so, and went to retrieve his laptop, leaving the room silent in his wake. When he returned, he found the silence broken by Chan and Woojin talking quietly. It seemed, after the ten minutes they had just had, some of the sleepiness had finally left from Woojin's face, and he sent Felix a small smile. Despite the situation, Felix felt his heart melt in his chest. 

The moment was broken when Chan cleared his throat, and the boys got to work. After a quick discussion, they decided that they would cycle through all the languages in alphabetical order for organization's sake. It was a long frustrating process, yielding no results from the entire first hour. Baby looked even more upset with himself now as if the language barrier was his personal fault. Felix just took another deep breath and clicked on the next language: Latin.

As soon as Baby heard it he sat up straight as a rod in his chair. "Etiam! Etiam!" Felix felt like cheering, and Chan looked like he had just had a religious experience. Felix typed into the box again, deleting the previous message.

_Hello! If there's something you want to say type it into the box in Latin :)_

Felix pressed the read-aloud button, as he had so many times before and Baby seemed to listen intently before turning the laptop towards himself and beginning to type. At first, he seemed to be having a large deal of trouble but after a moment he appeared to get the hang of it. He pushed the computer back towards Felix, who pressed translate and began to read aloud to Woojin and Chan.

"I'm sorry to bother you, I do not have the language currently. I am tired and hungry." He didn't have language? What was that supposed to mean? He turned to ask Chan, but he had obviously gotten stuck on the second part of the message. Felix took a moment to reflect, maybe he was prioritizing the wrong types of things right now. Here was a boy who he'd found napping in the woods, who was tired and hungry and scared out of his wits, and Felix was worried about what language he spoke. 

Unsurprisingly, it was Chan who leaped to attention first, retrieving fruit from the refrigerator in what seemed to be record time. He placed it in front of Baby, who smiled so wide at him, he could see the edge of his braces. He dug into the fruit immediately, and after an apple and two tangerines, Felix could see him getting dazed with exhaustion. Chan took the computer again, typing to ask Baby where he wanted to sleep. Baby seemed to take a moment to consider before he took Chan by the hand and led him to the living room, and by extension, the cuddle pile they had passed on the way in. 

He dragged Chan to the edge of the sofa, where no one seemed to be resting, and sat him down. Once he decided that Chan looked comfy enough, reclined slightly with his legs apart, he clambered between them, sitting on the space left bare. He pitched his weight forward, wrapping his arms delicately around Chan's neck, with the boy in question just sitting slightly shell-shocked. The cherry on top of the whole sleep position was Baby turning his head just so, in a way that placed his right ear directly over where Chan's heart was. He snuggled in, impossibly closer. Watching the display Felix had to coo. 

Chan however, was in an emotional state his friend Bambam would call "Gay panic". Truly, he thought to himself, how could he be blamed for any of this? Felix had called, asking about a hypothetical boy in the woods, but he hadn't mentioned how goddamn cute he was. Or how vulnerable he looked when he blinked up at Chan. Felix knew him, and he very well should have anticipated the surge of protectiveness he would have over Baby.

How dare he have the nerve to bring back a boy to the dorms who was not only tiny but cute and innocent too. Chan was absolutely screwed. His mind was ripped from this particular path when Baby let out all small whimper, akin to the cry of a kitten. He wriggled slightly in Chan's lap, the latter beginning to panic. How did you treat tiny boys snuggling into your lap? The only experience he had on the matter was with actual babies, but it was worth a try at the very least. Chan started in the small of Baby's back, rubbing small circles into the back of his sweater. At last, he stilled, his breathing evening out. Chan let out a sigh of relief, crisis averted. 

From their vantage point, Woojin and Felix were openly gushing in the other boys' general direction. This was turning out to be tugging their heartstrings a lot more than anticipated. After watching for what could probably be considering a creepy margin of time they made their way over to the open spots next to Chan and Baby, Woojin linking hands with Chan and Felix laying across his lap. Felix tried to stay up, worried that Baby would wake afraid and unremembering of how he got to this unfamiliar place, but in the warmth of being surrounded by his seven boys, and hopefully with luck, eight boys, he drifted off into the best sleep he had in a while. 

When he woke, sadly it was to the sound of whispered shouts. He opened his eyes to see that Seungmin, Hyunjin, Minho, Changbin, and Jisung were all in varying states of shock and panic.

"Jesus you guys, what's going on?" They looked at him as though he'd just proclaimed he was getting straight married to Woojin's mom, which was a little much, in Felix's humble opinion.  
"There is a random person snuggling into Chan's lap. How do you want us to react?" This was Jisung, who was just about as freaked out as anticipated. With a start Felix turned, remembering the events of the previous night. 

"Ah- no guys don't worry, I found him in the woods last night when I was walking and he wouldn't speak and seemed terrified so I brought him back here. He's sleeping like that on Chan because it was the only way he would sleep, and we were too tired to protest it. Besides, you can't see his face right now but he's basically a baby, he has braces and everything." Changbin let out a puff of air, but whether it was from relief or frustration was decidedly uncertain. 

Felix decided that would be his call to action, and sat up from where he was lying. He leaned over and slowly shook Woojin, then Chan, then Baby to consciousness. Woojin and Chan started, but Baby just burrowed himself deeper into the latter. Chan continued to talk him to awareness, babbling into his ear until he turned and graced the other five boys with a sleepy smile. Felix could hardly hold back his laugh watching everyone's face melt into something unbelievably tender as if he hadn't predicted that it would happen exactly like that. 

He turned to Felix next and began to speak, shocking him half out of his wits. "Thank you for saving me last night Felix, I was really scared." This was accompanied by a shy smile and several doe-eyed blinks, which Felix was sure would have short-circuited his brain in any other circumstances, but just gaped. 

"You- I thought- you're speaking Korean? You only spoke Latin last night, what the hell?" Baby flinched violently and looked down at his lap. 

"I'm sorry but I told you last night, I was too tired and afraid for my all-speak to function. The only reason I could talk in Latin is was that I was required to learn it manually."

"All-speak? Like the thing that Superman has?" For the second time that morning, Baby caught Felix off-guard. 

"Maybe? I wanted to thank you and give you a blessing but I was so, so tired. I hadn't eaten in like a week and I thought I was gonna die and I didn't mean to bother you and you're all probably so annoyed, but I was so happy you found me and I don’t want to intrude so I can just-" Chan cut off his rambling mid-sentence.

"Hey, Baby, no one is mad, and we aren't just gonna kick you out." His hands once again soothed down Baby's back and his posture relaxed. "Wait, so then what is all-speak?"

"Ah, it’s a gift that all fae possess allowing us to speak and understand all languages, as the name suggests, but it uses a ton of energy so there are certain times when the ability is turned off to keep us alive." They all took a moment to process this. Fae? All-speak? This entire situation is getting increasingly bizarre. Finally, after a pregnant pause, Hyungjin broke the silence.  
"So then what are you?"

"What do you mean? I'm fae? Same as you." This time Felix had to take a deep breath to keep from yelling out the streams of questions running amuck in his head. Baby, who he had found napping in a circle of mushrooms, unused to all modern commodities, who seemed confused as to where he was. Was fae really that strange of an explanation? Okay, it was, but what else could account for all the strange happenings of the past twenty-four hours? Selective amnesia? Maybe Baby is faking it? But why? What's the motive for a teenager to pretend about something like this? There were none that would hold any water when in the face of a logical thought process. So, to sum it all up, Felix believed him, but he still had questions. 

"First of all, everyone here in this room is human, except apparently you. You said you're fae, so then why were you sleeping in the woods." Baby looked distraught. 

"I was kicked out of my village, and I was wandering around, but I got so hungry and tired that after a while I just had to lay down. When I woke up I was in an unfamiliar forest, so I tried to make a gateway back to my village, that was the mushroom circle you saw. But it didn't work, I think that it was once again because I was so tired."  
Woojin looked at him with a touch of awe. What heinous crime must one commit to get kicked out of a fae village? Changbin seemed to read his mind. 

"What did you do get kicked out?" There was a moment of silence where Woojin could see Baby stare down at his lap in shame. 

"I helped a human who had offended one of the most powerful fae in the realm. She said if I didn't accept banishment then she would curse my entire village, so they decided to make the choice for me. It's not like they wanted me there anyways." This stirred up an emotion within Woojin that he hadn't really expected: pity. How hard must it have been to abandon everything you've ever known, to face the fact that you are unwanted, a mere hazard to your loved ones. Woojin decided that no matter what everyone else determined, Baby would be under his protection unequivocally. He saw in Felix, Chan and Changbin's face they felt the same. 

"Okay," Woojin began, "I believe you, and want you to stay, but it has to be voted on. No one in this household can make a big decision like this without consulting the others. So, all in favor of Baby staying?" Eight hands rose up into the air, with Baby watching confusedly. He seemed to understand what was going on after a second and raised his hand along with them. 

"I want to stay so, so bad, please don't make me go!" With this his eyes became glassy again and his bottom lip began to tremble. Chan pulled him back into his chest, whispering softly into his ear before addressing everyone else. 

"So it's decided on, Baby is staying with us for the indefinite future." Baby hopped a little in Chan's lap at this.

"Really? You're letting me stay?" Chan gave him a big, soft smile. 

"Really Really, but I have to ask, why is your name Baby?"

"Ah- fae all have really long lives, and because of it a lot of the time it's hard for them to conceive and birth children, so very few babies are born. My parents were the youngest of our whole village, a good three-hundred years or so, making them the only ones able to even consider having kids. By the time they had me I was about five hundred and fifty years younger than every other person then them, hence the name Baby. I've always wanted a real name though, like what humans have. Wait! you guys should come up with my name! That way I can fit in a little better!" 

Chan froze. This was a huge responsibility, something most parents spent months doing, he couldn't just come up with a perfect name for Baby on the spot. He said as much to Baby, who just smiled. 

"I really don't mind," he began, looking up at Chan. "I just want a name that you guys give me, names are special for fae. That's actually another reason I never got named. It's a custom that you don't receive a formal name until you are accomplished, there's a whole ceremony and everything! It's always kind of been a dream for me to have one, but I guess that's not going to happen." He ended this particular tangent with a small frown, looking down dejectedly. Hyunjin, who to this point had been watching quietly, took a few steps in Baby and Chan's direction. He wrapped his arms as far around them as he could, nuzzling his face into Baby's neck.

"How 'bout this, when we choose your name, we can throw you a bigger, better ceremony. We're just going to need to be educated on how it goes, considering how I doubt that it's anything along the lines of a run of the mill human birthday party. You can help plan all of it." Where this was going to fit into the boys' busy college schedules, Hyunjin had no idea but he'd be damned if he let Baby be sad about this when he could avoid it. Besides, it was only mid-October, so they hadn't truly gotten into the hellish exam months yet. On the subject of school, what were they going to do with Baby while they were in class? They lucked out today, with their first classes all in the afternoon, but they'd have to leave him alone, unless they skipped, that is. And they could only afford to skip for so long, literally. 

Luckily for all of them, and (somewhat) easy solution presented itself promptly. They could just bring him to class with them. He wasn't particularly badly behaved and was content doing nothing for hours as long as he got some sort of physical contact, of course. However much harder it was to take notes with a pseudo-sixteen-year-old clinging to you like his very life depended on it, they all enjoyed his company and his ability to make all their classes (even econ) bearable, which was no small feat. 

By late November they had fallen into a pleasantly domestic routine. Baby's naming ceremony came and went, the faerie being dubbed the name "Yang Jeongin." All this isn't to say that they didn't have problems, of course. Jeongin had the fae equivalent of PTSD, leaving nightmares, panic attacks and countless sleepless nights in their wake. 

Often the boys would have petty arguments, inconsequential until someone crossed a line. Those would usually be followed by one boy taking a side, then another, then another, till there wasn't any neutral ground left. The resolution of each spat would vary, but the makeup session stayed the same. The main instigators would go out to eat somewhere and talk out what started it. When they returned, all nine of the boys piled onto the couch, cuddling and talking softly as they watched whatever show or movie they managed to agree on. 

It had always been like this, even before Jeongin came, but somehow his presence in the whole ordeal made it different. For one thing, like he had previously mentioned he was very young by fae standards and had the innocence to match. That coupled with fae societies unwillingness for public affection and you had someone who knew nothing about anything related to dating. They hadn't even found out this particular fact until they were all piled up, watching some soapy drama when the protagonist finally gave her love interest a long-awaited kiss. Jeongin had watched on, slightly upset and very confused. 

"What are they doing? It looks like they're trying to cannibalize each other." For a moment, the room was so silent you could have heard a pin drop. At last, it was Chan who answered. 

"Sweetie, they're kissing, y'know like the sign of affection?" Jeongin just huffed, unimpressed. 

"That seems like a stupid way to show affection." Chan smiled. 

"It's not, it's actually really nice once you get the hang of it." Jeongin looked like he was about to say something else, but before he could speak again the drama's protagonist let out a scream, effectively startling all of them out of the conversation. 

Jeongin decided that if kissing was so nice, there was no way he'd let himself be left out.


	2. electric souls

Despite his somewhat ditzy appearance, Jeongin wasn't stupid. He heard how Chan talked about kissing, knew that no one in their group of boys kissed each other. But what he didn't know was _why _? An experimental search on Changbin's tablet declared that one was only to kiss people they love, so did no one in the house love each other? He decided he'd ask Changbin, seeing as it seemed he'd be knowledgeable in these sorts of things. He found him curled up in his bed, reading something on his phone.__

__"Changbinnie hyung, do you guys love each other?" Changbin seemed surprised, either by the manner of the question or his unawareness of Jeongin's presence. He gathered his wits rather quickly, though._ _

__"Of course we do, why?"_ _

__"Then why don't you guys kiss?" Changbin sat for a moment, shocked silent by Jeongin's query._ _

__"There's different types of love Jeonginnie, friend-love, love-love, lust." Jeongin processed that. He could make assumptions on what friend-love and love-love were, but what on Earth was lust?_ _

__"Lust?" he questioned, his confusion only getting greater as he watched Changbin's cheeks turn a delicate shade of pink._ _

__"Don't- this is a discussion for another time. I am _not deliberating lust with you." Jeongin huffed.__ _

___"Why not?"_ _ _

___"You didn't even know what a kiss was, you aren't ready." Jeongin huffed again, his lips forming a pout. Why was Changbin hyung allowed to decide what he was and wasn't ready for? He was about to argue this point further when he remembered his initial mission._ _ _

___"You never answered my question. Why don't you guys kiss? Does that have to do with lust?"_ _ _

___"Once again, I am not explaining lust to you, but good try. And we don't kiss because we have friend-love, not love-love for each other." he bit his lip._ _ _

___"Why are you lying hyung? You only bite your lip when you lie." Changbin winced._ _ _

___"Okay," he started, taking a deep breath. "I have love-love for everyone, but they don't have it back. You should only kiss people if you have love-love for them and they have love-love for you." This was something Jeongin _hadn't_ known. How does one know the difference between friend-love and love-love? He voiced this thought aloud, and Changbin took a second to contemplate this before replying. _ _ _

___"Friend-love, I think, is when you want to get to know someone. You want them to know what makes you happy and sad and such, but with love-love, you want to be known. You want to reveal every secret you have, and you want them to love you for all of them." Oh. _Oh_. He was in love-love with Changbin. And Felix. And Seungmin. And Chan, and Minho, and Hyunjin, and Woojin, and Jisung. But wait, if he love-loved Changbin, and Changbin love-loved him, that meant they could kiss, right? _ _ _

___"Changbinnie hyung, can I kiss you? I love-love you?" Changbin adopted a face very much akin to a startled wild animal and left, leaving Jeongin sitting alone on his bed. Changbin must not love-love him, he must have been talking about love-loving everyone else. That made sense, Jeongin thought. He wasn't as cool or pretty as the rest of them, and was probably lucky if Changbinnie hyung even friend-loved him. Despite this, he couldn't help but be disappointed. He love-loved all eight of the boys, and as of now, he doubted a single one felt the same, not that he blamed them._ _ _

___He made his way into the room he shared with Chan, the reason for which being he owned a queen size bed as opposed to everyone else's twin. He threw himself into the mess of blankets and comforters, burrowing himself into a den of warmth. Usually, doing all of this made him feel better immediately, not to mention the soul-healing properties of Chan's smell of cinnamon body wash and fruity shampoo, but today it just made him feel _bad_. Almost without realizing it, tears began to drip down his face. After a moment, the tears escalated into full-on sobbing, Jeongin being forced to use a pillow to muffle himself. _ _ _

___Although the pillow had quieted his sobs a fair amount, it didn't prevent Chan's bizarre talent of sensing when any of his boys were upset. Only a few minutes into Jeongin's full-scale breakdown, Chan barged in looking concerned._ _ _

___"Jeonginnie? Sweetheart are you alright?" Jeongin sat up, giving him a devastated look. Chan, in response, practically threw himself into the bed, pulling Jeongin tight to his chest. It was a strange mirror of the night that they'd found him, alone and afraid. This too, usually calmed down Jeongin, but not today. When Chan pulled him tight to his chest, he only sobbed harder, and after around fifteen minutes, Chan scooted him onto the bed again. He leaned over Jeongin and brushed his hair off his forehead before placing a small kiss before leaving._ _ _

___He made his way through the house, instructing the seven remaining boys to meet him in the kitchen. When everyone arrived he began to explain the situation._ _ _

___"Something made Jeonginnie cry, and none of the usual things will calm him down. I need to know who did what, and why that made him cry." Throughout Chan's statement, the boys murmured among themselves, trying to figure out if it was them. All of them except Changbin, that is. Chan, observant as always, seemed to notice right away prompting Changbin with a raised eyebrow. Changbin took in a shuddering breath before speaking._ _ _

___"It was my fault I think," he said looking down ashamed at his lap. "I didn't mean to." Chan didn't seem surprised by that. No one in the house would willingly upset Jeongin the way he'd been upset.  
"So what happened?"_ _ _

___"He- uh- he was asking me weird questions about like, love and shit, and kissing and I kind of panicked."_ _ _

___"That doesn't answer the question, Changbinnie."_ _ _

___"I was afraid I would say something stupid, something that would confuse Jeongin to the point of no return, so I just left." “Well, you know that means you’ve got to fix this. He’s inconsolable in there.”_ _ _

___“I know, I just- I’m not sure what to tell him.” Chan sighed._ _ _

___“Please Binnie, just do your best he inconsolable in there and I don’t know what to do.” With a deep breath and a trembling smile Changbin stood up and made his way over to Jeongin’s room, rapping softly on the closed door before letting himself in._ _ _

___“Hey Innie, it’s me.” Changbin was at a loss for words. What was he supposed to say? _Oh, hey sorry I confessed my undying love to you and then ran away, but I’m emotionally stunted._ That would work _great_. Whatever. He had to do something. He watched as Jeongin pushed himself further into his pile of blankets. _ _ _

___“Can you tell me why you’re upset? I promise I won’t get upset with you.” He leaned over to where Jeongin was curled up, still crying, and carefully extracted him from the tangle of blankets, and onto his lap. Finally, he seemed to calm down, the tears slowing._ _ _

___“I don’t wanna. ‘S stupid.”_ _ _

___“Hey, no, if it has you this upset it can’t be stupid, can it?” Changbin took Jeongin’s silence as an opportunity to wipe away his tears with his thumbs, painfully aware of how Jeongin leaned into his soft touch._ _ _

___“I- oh god, I’m so stupid,” he sniffed before continuing. “I love-love you. And everyone else in the house, I’m just a little bit sad no one love-loves me back. I understand why though, I guess.”_ _ _

___Jesus. Why did Jeongin, precious Jeongin, think that no one loved him back. Well that, as untrue as it was, explained why he was so devastated. Changbin almost let out a soft chuckle, stopping himself at the last moment. Jeongin was in the exact same boat that he was._ _ _

___“Hey, you know that’s not true right?” Jeongin’s confused look prompted him to continue. “I love-love you, I was just too afraid to say something.” Jeongin looked up at him, wide-eyed._ _ _

___“You aren’t just saying that to make me feel better, right?” Changbin huffed out a laugh._ _ _

___“I could never.”_ _ _

___“Does- can I kiss you then?” Screw this, Changbin was done hiding his feelings. He leaned down, pressing a firm kiss onto Jeongin’s lips. The moment their lips touched, Changbin felt a jolt of energy, something between taking a hit off the strongest blunt in the world and being injected with an entire Starbucks worth of caffeine. He was very suddenly made aware of the fact that he wasn’t in contact with the bed anymore. He opened his eyes only to find that he and Jeongin were floating a solid foot above the bed._ _ _

___“Jeongin? What’s going on?” Jeongin, the little bastard just let out a giggle at the panicked tone of his voice._ _ _

___“We’re floating, duh.” Changbin was so caught up in the wonder of floating that he neglected to hear the approaching footsteps. In barged the other seven boys, alarm clearly written on their face._ _ _

___“What happened? Is everyone alright? Wait holy shit are you floating?” This was Seungmin, his voice changing from concerned to wondrous in a matter of moments._ _ _

___Jeongin looked confused, answering Seungmin’s question with his own. “What do you mean what happened?”_ _ _

___“Every plant with in a quarter-mile of here just grew at a years worth of its normal rate. And once again, why are you floating?”_ _ _

___“Oh, the floating thing is just something I used to do when I was excited as a little kid, and the plant thing? I guess it must of been me, but it's never happened before. Magic’s kinda odd like that.” Huh. Sometimes it was a little too easy to forget he was a magical being old enough to be their grandfather._ _ _

___“That still doesn’t explain why Changbin is floating though.” Jeongin’s cheeks flushed, and he sounded slightly flustered when he spoke._ _ _

___“I- uh- I think it was just because we were touching.” Seungmin looked skeptical, but was quickly distracted._ _ _

___“Okay, regardless, you two got your drama all ironed out right?” Changbin sends Jeongin a shy smile._ _ _

___“Yeah, we did.” Changbin swore for a moment a flit of some unnamable emotion flashed over Seungmin’s face, but as fast as it was there, it was gone again.  
“Well, I guess if everything is okay, I’ll leave you guys to it,” and with that the room emptied, leaving only Changbin, Jeongin, and silence in their wake. In the end, it was Jeongin who broke the latter. _ _ _

___“Not to be too forward,” he began with pink still dusting his cheeks, “but could we get back to what we were doing?” Changbin couldn’t help himself, letting out a soft laugh._ _ _

___“ _Oh,_ I see,” he started to tease, but he leaned in anyway. This kiss was less soft than the first, but it carried all of the same tenderness and love.  
Jeongin’s inexperience was obvious, but had the same endearing feel of everything else he did, so Changbin couldn’t find it in himself to hold it against him. Instead he brought a gentle hand up to rest lightly against his cheek, thumb smoothing over his cheekbones. _ _ _

___Jeongin on the other hand was having a religious experience. He had never considered that kissing would be half as good as Chan said it was, and now that he realized it was, he never wanted stop. Something that Chan had failed to mention was the safety of it all. Held tight against Changbin’s chest he felt safer and warmer and more content than he ever had before, and as he pulled back he saw the same feeling mirrored in Changbin’s eyes. For a moment they stayed like that, forehead to forehead, staring into each other's eyes without a care in the world. This was cut short by Changbin speaking._ _ _

___“Do- will you be my boyfriend?” Jeongin looked positively perplexed._ _ _

___“I am? But I thought you love-loved me, like not as a friend.” Changbin rushed to explain himself._ _ _

___“No, no, it’s what humans call the people they’re in a romantic relationship with.”_ _ _

___“Ohhhh. Oh- I- Yes! I’ll be your boyfriend, but I want to talk about something first.” Changbin smiled._ _ _

___“Alright, but only if you put us back down on the bed, this floating is freaking me out a bit.” Jeongin made a face but plopped them gently back down on the bed. “So what did you want to talk about?”_ _ _

___“You said that you love-loved everyone in this house,” Changbin grimaced._ _ _

___“I- I do.” Jeongin looked relieved._ _ _

___“So do I, and I have a plan. We can’t be the only people who love-love each other in this house. So we should try and make all the other boys our boyfriends, right?” Changbin considered it, Jeongin was right, there were far too many heady stares thrown around for them to be the only people with non-platonic feelings in the house. In fact, Changbin had seen every single member of the house eyeing up Jeongin on one occasion or another. He loved him, he was certain of that, but he loved the others too, and he would never _ever_ be strong enough to resist the opportunity to have both. _ _ _

___“Yes, I think that’s a great idea, but how should we do it?”_ _ _

___“We should plan an event that has just us one-on-one with everyone so we can double-team them.”_ _ _

___“That’s also a good idea so they know we aren’t cheating on each other. Who do you want to start with?” Jeongin made a face._ _ _

___“Hyunjin? He’ll be easy to get through to, I think.” Changbin agreed, and plans were made to drag Hyunjin out to see some new movie that he wouldn’t shut up about._ _ _

___If anyone asked, Changbin just wanted to be the one to take Jeongin to the movie theater for the first time, and please Hyunjin all in one fatal swoop. No asked though, because it was obvious some part of their dynamic had changed. Jeongin now crawled into bed with Changbin instead of Chan, and it seemed like the elder was painfully on edge, as if he wanted to ask something but was unsure of the consequences._ _ _

___Despite the tension, Jeongin was happier than he had been in what felt like forever. And when the day of the movie finally came upon him he felt like he was going to bounce right out of his skin._ _ _

___“Hey, you’re gonna wear yourself out doing that.” Jeongin huffed._ _ _

___“Then what do you suggest I do?”_ _ _

___“We could get you ready, some makeup and everything.” Jeongin grinned, and they began to pick out his outfit, eventually choosing an oversize sweater with cuffed jeans and his ankle boots. By the time he had showered and gotten dressed they had managed to burn thirty minutes, and as Changbin had already gotten ready, he began to do Jeongin’s makeup. It was nothing dramatic, just a little bit of lip stain and dark eyeshadow, but he was caught off guard by how good he looked with the whole look, sweater included._ _ _

___At long last, they made their way to Hyunjin’s room to get ready to leave. All three together they must have been some sight to see. Hyunjin and Jeongin looking like they just stepped out of some high end fashion catalog, and Changbin looking he just stepped out of a music video._ _ _

___When they arrived at the theater it would be an understatement to say that people were staring. All eyes seemed to be on them, but they hardly noticed, all too enamoured with each other. When they finally exited the line with their array of various overpriced movie theater foods Jeongin began the wideyed walk to theater number five, seemingly fascinated by every poster. Changbin and Hyunjin just trailed slightly behind, cooing everytime Jeongin did something particularly cute._ _ _

___As fascinated as he was with the posters, Jeongin was even more impressed with the giant screen playing trailers. They arranged themselves in their seats so they both leaned inwards on Hyunjin, who was sandwiched between them. When the movie started they both found excuses to hold his hands, first Changbin, then Jeongin._ _ _

___With every moment Hyunjin seemed to grow more and more flustered, eventually crescendoing into Jeongin cupping his face and placing his face forehead to forehead with his own, like he and Changbin had been only days earlier. Unlike with Changbin though, this time it was Jeongin who closed the gap, kissing Hyunjin softly. Hyunjin didn’t kiss back, and when Jeongin pulled away he turned frantically to Changbin._ _ _

___“Aren’t you- I thought you were dating?”_ _ _

___“We are, but we want to date you too, will you be our boyfriend?” Jeongin said, beating Changbin to the punch. Hyunjin seemed shocked, but after a moment a warm affection spread over his face like butter._ _ _

___“I would love to be your boyfriend, so I’ve gotta ask do we plan on getting any more boyfriends?” Oh, he had caught on very quickly. Changbin rushed to answer him._ _ _

___“Yes, we do, six to be more to be exact,” Hyunjin smiled._ _ _

___“Perfect, I wouldn’t have it any other way. Also this means I can kiss you guys whenever I want right?”_ _ _

___“That’s exactly what it means.”_ _ _

___True to their words, Hyunjin joined in Jeongin and Changbin’s daily kiss session. Strangely, there was almost no shift in the dynamic, except now Jeongin alternated between sleeping in Changbin’s bed and sleeping in Hyunjin’s. He was yet to venture back into what used to be his shared room with Chan. He was unsure if how his boyfriends would take it, and even more afraid about Chan and any assumptions he might have made. Between spending time with his boyfriends they lay down the plan to bring the next person into the relationship, deciding that Seungmin is next. It turns out to be in vain though, because in the middle of a HyunChangJeon cuddle pile monstrosity he walks in with Woojin, and the two explain how they too have feelings for the whole house of boys, and their three turns to five._ _ _

___The abrupt entrance of Seungmin and Woojin don’t lessen the sweetness, with Jeongin deciding almost immediately after kissing Woojin that he was undeniably the best kisser. He had a little thing he did with his jaw when he kissed, and every time he did it it sent lightning bolts from Jeongin’s lips all the way down to his toes._ _ _

___It was Woojin as well who taught Jeongin the distinction between just kissing and making out. If he had liked just kissing, than his favorite pastime in the world had to be making out. He had been rightfully shocked the first time Woojin had initiated it, a quick swipe of his tongue startling Jeongin’s mouth open in what he’d claim was a gasp, but really was more akin to a whimper.It had escalated from there, Woojin taking the lead and Jeongin attempting desperately to follow. It took a couple tries for him to _get it_ , but his effort was not missed by Woojin. He rewarded him with a nip on his bottom lip, and _oh_ , that was new. A couple moments after Woojin did it to him, Jeongin tried to mirror it on him. This prompted the elder to pull him into his lap, and this was probably the best thing yet._ _ _

___It was a whole new kind of safety. Not like he had with Changbin where it had felt like he was swaddled in enough blankets to keep him safe and protected for the rest of his life. No, this safety was like that of a free-fall ride. Like when you feel the harness sturdy against your chest and you know you're safe. And yet, you can't help your heart racing or the adrenaline pumping through your veins. In the end Jeongin was satisfied and docile, curled into Woojin's side, sleeping better than he had in _forever_._ _ _

___The next day he was eager to show off what he had learned. Needless to say, Seungmin, Changbin, Hyunjin were impressed. Jeongin could hardly escape from their kisses for the next few days, not that he minded. But as he grew closer with his four boyfriends, the distance between him and the other four grew. He knew if he didn't do something soon, the rift may be come irreparable.  
They decided that next they'd try for Felix and Minho, and after that, Jisung, and then finally, Chan._ _ _

___The plan to include Felix and Minho was simple enough, they would corner them when they were practicing dance. Then, they'd ask them, and with any luck, they'd say yes. The day came to put their plan into action, and it wouldn't be inaccurate to say they were worried. It wasn't unjustified though, how often does one get invited into a five person polyamorous relationship, and how often does one _actually agree_. Regardless, the show must go on._ _ _

___It was four pm, their usual practice time, so the five boys made their way to the spare room that worked as a makeshift studio. With a deep breath, Changbin began the proposition._ _ _

___"Hey, this is a strange thing to ask, but do you want to be our-" before the words were even out of his mouth Felix was answering._ _ _

___"Yes! I want to be dating you guys too! I was so worried because I thought you weren't going to ask, y'know because I figured you didn't like me like that, but I'm so, so, so happy!" He finished this spiel by throwing himself into Changbin's arms, and the group’s attention shifts to Minho. It takes a minute for him to come out of his stupor, and as they wait their anticipation and anxiety only grows. For better or for worse, Minho starts to speak._ _ _

___"I- yes, I will." For better, apparently. And once again their ranks grow. But there's a strange look on Minho's face, one suspiciously close to guilt. Though all six boys in the room appear to notice, Jeongin is the first to comment.  
"You look guilty, is something wrong?"_ _ _

___"Well- it's just, I'm dating Jisung already. Am I going to have to break up with him?" Whatever they were expecting, this wasn't it. Woojin was the first to recover his wits._ _ _

___"Ah, no that's actually a good thing. Could you, perhaps, ask him out on our behalf?" Minho's face splits into a grin so big and bright Woojin is sure you could run a power plant on it._ _ _

___“It would be my pleasure.” So then, just like magic, they have another boyfriend. That leaves only Chan. Even their best brainstorm/makeout/movie marathon session fails to provide an idea that seems right. Some are too impersonal, some too over the top, others just _wrong_. So for one day, then two, than a week, then two, they don’t make a move. Jeongin is still hopping bed to bed each day, and Chan’s bed is still left out of the cycle. Chan himself seems… quieter, and maybe a little bit sad. Jeongin is pretty sure he isn’t sleeping, judging by the dark circles under his eyes and the way that it takes him a couple moments to respond to anyone. He wants to say something, really, he does. But he doesn’t want to cross a line, as fragile as they are. _ _ _

___His intentions hardly matter though when it's just him and Chan alone in the house, he knows it’s just them. When the silence is broken by very faint, distant sounding sobs. He knows that there’s no one else it could be, but the very idea of Chan, ever positive, being upset enough to be sobbing like _that_? That’s something he doesn’t even want to think about. But he can still hear the sobs echoing down the silent hallways and decides that uncrossable lines be damned, he isn’t going to let Chan suffer. _ _ _

___As he makes his way to Chan’s room the sobs grow in volume, and Jeongin at once feels so much remorse he can hardly walk. Nevertheless, he pushes on and makes his way into Chan’s room. And oh. _Oh_. If _hearing_ Chan as upset as he is was bad, then seeing it is so, _so_ much worse. He looks young like this, curled in on himself, tears dripping, breaths only coming in rapid gasps, and every nerve in Jeongin’s body is screaming to protect, to comfort. _ _ _

___It’s a sick, twisted mirror of how he felt when he thought no one in the house loved him the way he wanted to be loved, and he realises very suddenly that it must have been like this since the very beginning of his and Changbin’s relationship. Despite the fact that he’s been standing in the doorway for what feels like forever, Chan still hasn’t noticed his presence. In an effort not to spook him Jeongin drops himself gently on the bed, as if approaching a wild animal. Finally, Chan notices his arrival._ _ _

___“Hey, Innie, is everything alright?” Jeongin stares as if he’s grown another head._ _ _

___“Obviously not, are you alright?” Chan wipes his face as if to pretend he hadn’t been sobbing awful, gut-wrenching sobs only a minute ago._ _ _

___“Don’t worry about me,” he says sitting up, “I’m okay.” Jeongin takes advantage of his sitting position to crawl onto his lap. He pulls Chan into what could now probably be his signature position, forehead to forehead._ _ _

___“Hey, I know this seems like we’re leaving you out and I promise we aren’t, it’s just, there was no way to ask you out that was as good as you deserve.” With this, he places a soft kiss on the corner of Chan’s mouth, eyes scoping for a reaction. Lucky for him, a reaction he gets. Chan makes a face as if every single holiday and birthday he’s ever celebrated all got tied up into one and presented to him in the form of Jeongin._ _ _

___“You- you really mean that? You aren’t just saying it?” Jeongin just kisses him again, hoping that’s all the answer he needs. It is. Chan kisses back desperately and Jeongin is suddenly very, _very_ glad for how much Woojin taught him, because damn does he need it. _ _ _

___Chan kisses messier than anyone Jeongin has ever kissed before (even if that’s only seven people) and Jeongin finds he likes it a lot. Eventually, when the rest of the boys make it home from their various activities they look around, attempting to locate Jeongin and when they find him, and by extension Chan, they seem unbelievably happy._ _ _

___The mood in the house from that point on is lighter and so comforting it almost feels like heaven. All nine boys find that trading love and kisses is their new favorite pastime, except for maybe the weekly mario kart tournaments. As much of a living cliche as it is, they finally feel _whole_._ _ _

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hey dont forget to comment if u liked it,, also not to be to self promo-y but if u follow me on twit i take requests by dms (@cafepourclosers) n e ways hope u enjoyed this nightmare

**Author's Note:**

> hey guys thanks for reading,   
> n e ways im lonely hmu on my twit,, also i need a beta reader volunteers welcome


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